Reluctantly leaving Ava with Pax and Raine, Casimir joined Maeryn, already in discussion with the Saxumdale leaders. One of their queens, Astrid, had come while Soren stayed behind to oversee their kingdom.
“Casimir,” Astrid said, her black curls pulled into a coronet braid. “I’d like you to meet our general, Roan, and one of our captains, Imsel. You will coordinate with them, along with myself.”
Casimir extended his hand, shaking Roan’s. “It’s nice to meet both of you.”
Roan’s bright green eyes danced, stark against his deep gray complexion and short blond hair. Releasing Casimir’s hand, he clapped him hard on the back.
“Excellent. It’s fantastic to meet you too. Now just to let you know, Imsel here…well…they’re a bit quiet. So don’t take offense when they don’t speak much.” He tapped his temple withhis forefinger. “They’re always thinking…planning. Truly my best captain.”
Imsel evaluated Casimir and Roan with sharp attention, a hint of exasperation in their dark brown eyes, as if it was typical for Roan to point this out. Their light gray skin was pale against their long black hair, unbound aside from braids along the sides of their scalp, silver beads woven throughout. A kreovite staff—the same iridescent mineral the stone faes’ armor was composed of—was strapped across their back.
They extended their hand, giving Casimir a nod as they shook, but remained silent.
After the introductions were over, Maeryn cleared her throat. “We must get free of this terrain before a blizzard hits and slows us down even further.”
It’s a little late for that,Aro said, ambling up to the group.
“What do you mean?”
The animals can sense a storm brewing. We must keep going but we won’t be able to avoid the weather.
It was worsethan Casimir could have prepared for, the snow so thick there was hardly any visibility. Shivering, he adjusted the hood of his cloak, trying and failing to keep the thick flakes off his face.
“I’m so cold,” Ava said from in front of him, Luna snuggled on her lap while they rode Aro.
Casimir wrapped his arms tighter around her, pulling his cloak over her in an attempt to warm them further. “I know, love. Me too.”
The wind howled, biting into every inch of exposed skin as they plodded on. The storm was so loud the fae could barely hear each other over the noise, taking to shouting or speaking through their animals to communicate.
“We must find shelter and try to weather this storm,”Casimir said to Aro.
They pressed on for another half hour, Casimir pleading with the Mother to give them some type of break. They’d already lost soldiers during the ambush; they couldn’t afford to lose more to the elements. But they knew what they signed up for when they joined his forces, so he shoved down his dread and focused on searching for shelter before their losses became devastating.
Once Casimir got word from Aro of a suitable place, he directed their forces toward a group of tall pine trees, their silhouettes scarcely visible in the whiteout conditions. Casimir and Ava ducked to avoid the evergreen branches and emerged into the clearing. Though the snow still spun around them, the boughs filtered the wind enough to improve their ability to see.
Casimir dismounted. Luna leaped down and padded through the snow, then Ava slid off. They both pulled their cloaks tighter as they took in the space.
“Let’s set up camp!” Casimir called as Imsel and Maeryn approached.
“I’d like to raise rocks along the north side of this clearing to keep out the wind,” Imsel said. “Might there be a way to use the lava wielders to keep us warm?”
Maeryn pulled her black cloak tight. “We can easily get fires going. I wonder if your rock might be able to hold some of our lava to create makeshift warmers.”
Imsel shook their head. “Too hot. It will crack.”
“What if we let it cool down a bit first?”
“Worth a try.”
Casimir searched for Kai, finding him shivering. Jorrar was placing another cloak around him, pulling it tight beneath Kai’s chin. “You mustn’t fuss over me,” Kai said.
“I will always fuss over you, dear,” Jorrar replied, giving Kai a chaste kiss.
“Where would you like the healers’ tent?” Casimir asked.
“Against the stone wall. We need to get those who were wounded in battle taken care of. Many already succumbed to their injuries on the way here…” Kai answered.
Casimir’s heart lurched. “How many?”
